PIRLS Literacy 2016: Progress in International Reading Literacy Study 2016; South African children’s reading literacy achievement

The aim of this report is to describe and provide contextual information for the results and findings of the International Association for Educational Achievement’s (IEA) Progress in International Reading Literacy Study (PIRLS) 2016 conducted by the Centre for Evaluation and Assessment at the University of Pretoria for the implementation in South Africa. This report provides empirical evidence on the status of reading literacy comprehension levels currently in South Africa and permits the investigation of those on provincial level as well as for each one of the official languages. Furthermore, due to the measurement models applied, achievement data can be tracked over five and 10 year periods measuring progress over time and the extent to which changes are occurring within South African schools, classrooms and homes.